28,000 hectares of forest in Andalucía targeted for mass eradication of processionary caterpillars

The Junta has completed an operation to destroy masses of processionary caterpillars throughout the region's pine forests.

Four aircraft and a team on the ground covered 28,000 hectares of forest in October and November, mostly in Huelva province. Other areas included Malaga, Cordoba, Seville and Cadiz.

Staff equipped with a biological solution that avoids the use of toxins targeted the nests of the pests in pine trees during autumn and winter, preventing the caterpillars from emerging in spring, when they usually thrive. They pose a special risk to children and pets, causing skin, nasal, eye and respiratory irritation.

Pheromone traps and natural treatments have been set up in places of low infestation as part of the Junta's control programme. Nesting boxes have also been installed on trees in some areas to encourage birds that feed on the caterpillars.